The STEM Lab is the perfect place for students to explore STEM topics in a fun engaging, and hands on way that is not possible in a more traditional classroom setting. the learning in the STEM Lab is student centered. I largely leave it up to individual members of the STEM Lab to decide what and how much they want to learn, whether that is choosing the next week's activity or asking questions. If a student wants a more in-depth explanation on friction, I give it to them, but if another student would rather just observe friction by rolling a car on different surfaces, that's fine too. Everyone explores and learns in their own way.
The STEM Lab only gives students the basic concepts needed for the weekly activities as opposed to the more comprehensive lessons in the STEM classes we offer CCA students; however, the extra time allows for more projects and activities that are not covered in the STEM classes. This makes the STEM Lab a perfect supplement to the STEM classes for students who want to further apply what they have learned in the STEM classes. Of course, the STEM Lab is also perfect for students with little or no experience in STEM too. I always encourage older or more experienced students to help out the younger or less experienced students, and I make sure to bring students up to speed on topics they haven't yet learned (or just forgot) as needed.
The first session of STEM Labs will primarily cover robotics, programming, and simple machines. Most of the robotics and programming activities will be done in groups of three to four students working collaboratively, but there will be a few solo activities as well. It is encouraged that students bring their tablets or phones with the LEGO Boost app downloaded from their device's app store.
The STEM Lab will begin with a brief 15-minute discussion and demonstration of the weekly activity. The next half hour is designated as time to complete the activity and experiment with the concepts discussed at the beginning. The final 15 minutes will be reserved for cleaning up, reviewing what we learned, and asking questions.
The first session of STEM Labs will primarily cover robotics, programming, and simple machines. Most of the robotics and programming activities will be done in groups of three to four students working collaboratively, but there will be a few solo activities as well. It is encouraged that students bring their tablets, phones, or laptops with the LEGO Mindstorms Robot Inventor app downloaded from their device's app store.
The STEM Lab will begin with a brief 15-minute discussion and demonstration of the weekly activity. The next half hour is designated as time to complete the activity and experiment with the concepts discussed at the beginning. The final 15 minutes will be reserved for cleaning up, reviewing what we learned, and asking questions.